Insanis
by 808tenshi
Summary: Insanis, a desolate land now populated with hoards of 'experiments' gone wrong." Quasi-futuristic AU tale of the trials and tribulations of an MMO gamer. ShizNat. Collaborative work with Eagle8819.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Mai-HiME/MY-HiME series' are property of their respective owners. Fanfic; not for profit or redistribution, etc, etc.

-This is an AU fic, done in collaboration with fellow author Eagle8819. As the predominant writer of chapter one, any remaining errors are mine, and mine alone. I'll apologize here for an OoC-ness that may occur.

* * *

**Insanis: Chapter 1**

"Great eye you have there, Miss!" With a slick grin and a tug at his store-issued vest, the salesman leaned an arm on the store's central display. "Expansion just came out today, top of the line, added features and the latest and greatest styles in-game."

Standing in front of the rack, a slim, uniform-clad girl flicked said eyes to the man then back to the display in a dismissive fashion, running a hand carelessly through hair.

"Ah," faltering slightly at the cold look, the young man's grin wilted. "This version comes with a free VR--that's virtual reality--headset, with a built-in play-as-you-sleep option and..."

A sigh slipped pass coral-pink lips which had turned downward in a frown. Resigned to the fact that the clerk had no intention of leaving her to contemplation, the raven-haired girl turned to face the irritant.

At nearly 1.6 meters tall, the high school student cut a striking figure in the skirt and vest of her school uniform which covered an obviously well-toned body. The doll-like, porcelain complexion of her face created a stark contrast to the midnight-blue hair that flowed over her shoulders and down her back. Emerald-green eyes alighted on the man's face as she tilting her chin upward haughtily gesturing to the grand display.

"What's so great about it?"

"Well," the clerk chuckled nervously, suddenly vividly aware of a line of sweat running down his back. "_Insanis _is all the rage right now, I'm sure some of your classmates--"

"That's not what I asked, right?" Eyebrows furrowing, the high schooler glared. Of course she knew _what _it was_._ How could she not, what with her roommate playing it and every other person in school conversing about some new 'equipment' they found or tough 'enemy' they defeated.

Typically, the world of fads meant nothing to her but the nagging and shocked looks she had been getting after admitting to knowing nothing about the game, had driven her to action, causing her to scour the internet to researching the game and its components.

_Insanis,_ she quoted mentally to herself, _a desolate land now populated with hoards of 'experiments' gone wrong. The development of various chemical enhancements meant to empower and elevate humanity backfired and created creatures which now preyed upon it. The release of these chemicals into the atmosphere--which is now referred to by in-game inhabitants as 'The Plague'--created both soulless, super-human monsters, and those who use their own newly developed 'viruses' to combat them. Seeing the power of their monstrous creations, The Organization now seeks to find ways to control them and to 're-stabilize' civilization under their hand. Will you join the Rebellion and fight to end the ambitions of the Organization? Or, will you turn your back on humanity and become one of them? _

Despite the various rave reviews, the game had looked mediocre to her, at best; not any different from the numerous Massive Multi-player Online games that were already on the market. That was, until she'd seen the newest expansion preview, which had one word running through her mind: Guns, guns, guns--a whole slew of them, as bright, shiny and powerful in-game as their real life counter parts. Though by no means a trigger-happy, obsessive compulsive user of the weapon, it was safe to say that she did appreciate the delicate beauty of the steal, the sharp lines of the slide, the curve of the trigger, the recoil...

At the wistful expression that had betaken the young beauty's face, the clerk shuffled his feet nervously, clearing his throat to breaking her from her stupor.

"Um, Miss, are you...?"

His question was silenced mid-sentence as the as the girl turned on her heel and headed toward the registers.

"I'll take it."

*-*-*-*-*-*

"Wait, Natsuki, if I could just--"

Slamming the door to her room before her roommate, Tokiha Mai, could peek into her purchase, Kuga Natsuki tossed herself down on to the bed. Raven locks splayed out across the pale blue sheets as she smiled to herself, once again relishing the convenience of a lockable door. Though her first year in the high school dorms had not been without its moments, the utter lack of privacy had galvanized her into finding an apartment. A roommate had been a concession on her part to lower her out-of-pocket expenses as well as keep one of the few people she could call a 'friend' close to her. The fact that the young violet-eyed woman was a superb cook and disgustingly reliable and level-headed was just an added perk.

"Natsuki," another attempt to lure the girl out of her room, "don't you want dinner?"

"I've already eaten."

Hearing the girl outside huff and walk away from her door, Natsuki sat up, crossed her legs under as she pulled her game from the bag. The box was easily large enough to fit a decapitated human head, Natsuki noted offhandedly that it must have weighed about the same. Eager to begin, pale fingers nimbly stripped the container of its plastic wrap and extracted the box contents: a device, which she concluded was the "VR" headset, and a player's manual. Surprisingly light, Natsuki rotated the simple, visor-like play-set in her hands before setting it aside, regarding the second item with disdain; nearly the weight and mass of an encyclopedia, _Insanis'_ player's guide, obviously made up the bulk of her purchases' weight.

Hoisting the text to her lap, Natsuki flicked the cover open, carelessly flipping pass the useless sections of the guide: Warnings? Copyrights? Publishers? Fire hazards? Pfft.

Forest green eyes ran over the pages, settling the 'set-up' section just long enough to learn the location of the 'on' button.

Settling on to her bed, Natsuki breathed out slowly, sudden edginess intertwining with her excitement. Brushing a lock of hair off her face, she slid the glasses on and hit the power.

In a surreal rush of motion and light, the shadow-tinted walls of her room disappeared, replaced by a white glare.

"Welcome to Insanis." The smooth, feminine voice echoed through her head, seemingly coming from everywhere and nowhere at all.

Aside from the slightly dreamlike feeling she was getting at the moment, the discomfort she was experiencing was the blinding brightness of the white-walled, room she stood in. Blinking rapidly to clear the fluorescent splotches of light from her vision, Natsuki ran a hand through her hair in an unconscious show of nervousness, only to find their thoroughfare significantly shortened.

"What the hell?" A voice, deeper than her own spoke the words that echoed through the room. "What the hell!"

Frantic, Natsuki raised her hands before her face, finding the appendages held there foreign. Eyes which had previously been darting around like a trapped animal, froze as she swallowed. As a diver breathes before a plunge, Natsuki inhaled, slowly lowering her hands to rest on her chest. A panicked scream clawed at her throat as the smooth digits of her hand pressed against taunt, flat skin.

"Calm down."

Though she had thought herself alone in the room, forest green eyes latched on to the speaker. Clad in a business suit, the woman who stood in front of her tucked a lock of doe-brown hair behind her ear as she regarded the gamer with amused expression.

"Calm down? How can I be calm? You don't tell me to 'calm down', I'm a man!" With a snarl, the furious girl aimed an accusing finger at the suit-clad figure.

"It's rude to point." Striding forward, the woman grasped Natsuki's out-stretched finger. "If you wanted to be a girl, you only had to say so."

As she spoke, the hand which she held transformed, returning to its original, lithe form. The intricate bracelets on her wrist clinked as she released the captured hand to its owner, chuckling as the raven-haired girl gave herself a pat down before sighing in relief.

"By default, all player start off as males, we offer other character enhancements, but judging by your reaction, I'm going to assume you don't want to add any cosmetic changes to your being at this time?" Grinning broadly at the frosty glare the younger woman sent her, she added jokingly, "Not that you need it."

Before the now blushing girl could retort, she continued on.

"As I was saying before your outburst: Welcome to Insanis. My name is GM, that's Game Moderator, newbie," she added with a chuckle, "Lunensis, but you can call me Lunen. And, your name is?"

"Kuga," the girl muttered with a huff, "Natsuki."

"Good," Lunen smiled, "The system has registered user name: Natsuki. So..."

With a mischievous grin, the brunette clasped her hands behind her back as she slowly circled the stoic girl, one foot carefully placed in front of the other, stopping as she completed her circuit.

"...About your clothes."

With something akin to a shriek, Natsuki collapsed unto herself, clutching her torso, turning a magnificent shade of red in the process.

"Whoa, relax. It's not like you're completely naked and I'm a girl, too, you know."

Despite her embarrassment, Natsuki shot the GM a venomous look from her crouched position.

"I'm not an idiot, you know. I've heard the spiel: Guys are guys, girls are guys and kids are FBI agents, right? For all I know, you could be a guy--a pervert who enjoys seeing half-naked girls spawn in an empty room, while you ogle them for as long as time will allow."

Placing her hand over her heart in a dramatic fashion, charcoal colored eyes danced with humor.

"I'm hurt, Natsuki. If I didn't know better, I'd think you didn't trust me."

"Enough!" The crimson tint of blush on the dark-haired girl's face deepened. "Give me some clothes!"

As she spoken, three sets of clothing appeared before her, held up as though by invisible hangers.

"As you are just beginning, your clothing choices are limited. Throughout the game, you will be able to obtain rarer items via the enemies or shops. But, personally, I think you'd look great in this one." Lunen gestured to the skirt and tank top combo.

"No." Stretching a hand out, Natsuki grasped a plain T-shirt and Jeans set, tugging it over her head and up her legs as fast as possible.

"Such a shame." The brunette clucked her tongue on mock disdain. "But, why don't we move on."

Nodding her head to Natsuki's wrist, she spoke, regarding the dull, metal wristwatch that had spawned there with the dawned clothes.

"That item is now part of your being. It will serve as a map, as well as a storage unit for items you may collect. Touching applicable items will cause them to be absorbed into your item data-bank. Of course, the number of items you can store is limited. Thus, you will be alerted when you are nearing your limit."

Sensing a lecture coming on, Natsuki could nearly feel her eyes rolling back into her head. It wasn't that she was a bad listener, or poor planner, it was just that when excitement got the better of her, she preferred to tackle the situation head-on. Besides, how steep a learning curve could there be for such a popular game? Switching on her mental 'mute' button, Natsuki mused to herself, entertaining fantasies of shining weapons and cool clothes, only rousing from them when she noticed Lunen's stare.

"Uh..." Shuffling her feet, the bluenette looked slightly abashed. "What was that last bit?"

"I said, 'do you plan to go through the tutorial camp, or, do you want to start in the field?' Though the field you will start in is relatively close to a town, as you are clearly new to this type of things, starting in the camp is probably the best course of--"

"The field." With a joyful smile that things were finally about to start, Natsuki answered without hesitation. "I don't need a tutorial."

Hazy-colored eyes flicked apprehensively over the bluenette who was now grinning roguishly.

"It may be difficult, even in the beginning areas, there's still quite a bit that I haven't covered fully. The camp would ensure that you knew all the basics, you know."

"It's fine." The glow in the emerald green eyes, indicating that her mind would not be swayed; Lunensis sighed.

"Alright, Natsuki. If you have any major questions, I'm sure your partner can help you. Good luck."

As the image in front of her flicked, fading as swiftly as it had appeared, a switch clicked in Natsuki's head.

"Wait, Lunen, what part--Uoof." Natsuki grunted as a slight shock radiated through her legs, a feeling similar to landing after a jump.

Gone were the walls of the sterile, white room; the landscape before her stretched in all directions, its horizons littered with crumbling builds, the remnants and testament of a past civilization. What was once a veritable metropolis of high-rise buildings, homes and stores, similar to her world, only a mesh of rubble and skeletal structures remained. Virtual though it was, the rank smell of carnage and smoke assaulted her senses, causing her eyes to water. Small pyres of flames licked piles of debris and the twisted hulks of life-less foliage. Though her eyes strained, nary a person or sign of life could she see.

Tracking the paths that snaked between pieces of fallen and torn concrete, Natsuki could make neither heads nor tails or what direction she was to travel in. A bulb flashed her mind as she recalled Lunen's words earlier about her watch containing information that she would need. Skeptical of the actual use of the watch-like device on her arm, Natsuki tapped its face with a finger, her frown when nothing happened.

Angling the device to the little light that the smoke-hazed sky provided Natsuki noted with deepening irritation that not only did it look like a beat up piece of junk, there weren't any buttons or switches of any kind to indicate that it served a useful purpose--its face did not even show the time, instead, random numbers flickered across its display.

"What a piece of junk!" Irritated by both lack of purpose and understanding, Natsuki spoke aloud. "Where's the damned map?"

"If you asked, I'd have shown you. As far as I'm concerned, you're the only piece of junk here," the gruff, male voice answered with obvious annoyance.

Jaw-dropped, Natsuki's eyes shot to the source of the voice, alighting on the contraption strapped to her wrist which blinked in sync with its words. "Y-you talk!"

"Is it such a feat?" The voice sneered. "Forms _lesser _than I am can do so from what I've seen."

Still thoroughly shocked, Natsuki's cognitive senses had returned enough for her to catch the dig at her inferiority. Before she could send her own verbal jab at the device, Natsuki paused; the sound of a landslide of tumbling pebbles prickled the hairs on her arm. Pale lips parted slightly as she exhaled, straining her ears to locate the origin of the noise. Her device, too, had fallen silent, the only indication of the intelligence harboring there showed in the faint, pulsing light it emitted.

A shuffle of sound behind her, closer than the fallen rocks, sent strands of silken hair flying as the young girl whirled around. The hammering of her heart, sending a flash flood of adrenaline through her body, thundered in her ears as she faced the beast before her.

With no resemblance to anything human, the misshapen animal shambled toward the frozen girl on all fours. The size of something which might have once been a dog, creature's grime-coated hair was matted to its body. And, even in a world of unpleasant smells, the stench emanating from its body was repugnant. The sound of the low growl it emitted, as it pulled its filth covered lips back in a snarl was the only starting gun Natsuki needed before taking off in a mad sprint.

"What are you doing!" Displeased the voice from her wrist shouted. "You have to fight!"

"With what!" Natsuki shrieked back, darting into the broken-down hull of a building, obscuring her from the animal's sight.

"Your weapon, of course, it's only a weakling; an F-rank amongst the creatures in this world." Nonchalantly, the device explained. "You didn't read at all, did you?"

"Ah..." Chagrin momentarily overpowering her panic, Natsuki blushed.

A sigh from her partner.

"You, _master_," the word, sarcastically delivered, seemingly oozed from the blinking object, "have only one weapon. That is a Dagger. To use it, you must command it to be equipped; mentally or verbally, either is fine."

"I just say it? Like, 'equip Dagger'?" As she breathe the words out, a weight at her side brought a slim hand to her waist. Ivory fingers slowly closed around a rough hilt, pulling upward, as Natsuki drew a knife from the sheath that had appeared there.

Grinning as though she'd slain the proverbial dragon, Natsuki held the blade before her, relishing in the new-found confidence of having gained a means to defend herself. Rising from her crouch, she sneaked a peek into the street.

"It's not 'Master'," Natsuki murmured as she watched the animal's slow progress in their direction. "I won't take such a title given so grudgingly. Natsuki is fine."

The tips of her lips curved upward in a small grin, as Natsuki shifted her grip on the weapon.

"Well," a pause as beat-up device seemed to contemplate her declaration. "If that is so, Natsuki, you may call me Duran."

"Right," now grinning broadly, Natsuki could feel her excitement building once again, Natsuki stepped from the shadow of the building. "Shall we, Duran?"

"Give it your best."

Wielding the small blade, the fledgling gamer faced her first enemy, which had stopped its shambling progress and now had its bloodshot eyes fixed upon her. Noting that the animal had not been, nor seemed inclined or able to move fast, Natsuki advanced forward slowly, the tip of the dagger shaking slightly. As she angled in toward her enemy--who remained unmoving, regarding her with yellow-tinged eyes--her grip tightened, knuckles standing out, a starker white than her already pale skin.

Nearly in striking distance, Natsuki screamed as the animal lunged forward, sinking its teeth into the bare flesh of her arm before she could launch her own attack. Shaking herself free of its feeble grasp, she lost it.

"Oh, God! It bit me! It bit me, Duran!" In near hysterics, Natsuki retreated from the pursuing animal, clutching her bleeding arm which irradiated a dull pain."It bit me! Blood! Bleeding! It bit me!"

"Relax, it hasn't done much damage." As though explaining to a child, Duran spoke in calmly. "You have a small supply of healing 'viruses' in your possession. If you command me to use one, it will remove the injury."

"Heal, then!" A pinch in her forearm was the only indicated that the virus was being injected into her blood. Within moments, the pain in her arm had nearly dissipated, along with the wound which seemed to be healing in a fast-forward version of the normal process.

"Calm down, try again." Duran instructed. "You have two uses left before you need to have the virus restocked. Once this mongrel is has been dispatched, we'll make for the town."

Nodding, Natsuki swallowed in an attempt to moisten her dry throat. Moving as she had before, Natsuki dodged the lunge of the animal, reveling in the yelp it gave as her blade dove into its hide, striking down the creature. As the body of the monster hit the ground, it dissipated, leaving behind only a tattered piece of fabric and metal that may have once been the collar of a cherished pet. Picking it up between her fingers, Natsuki rubbed a thumb over the plate, which remained unreadable.

"Duran, something like this, I can store it, right?" She mumbled, almost to herself.

"If that's what you want."

Responding to her nod, the collar faded from her hand in a stream of data which flowed into her watch.

The battle induced high seeping from her as quickly as it had come, Natsuki rose, dusting her knees. Before she could straighten, a force, moving with the speed and power of a professional football player, knocked from her feet, tossing the young girl aside as though she were a rag doll. Grunting against the pain, Natsuki struggled to her feet, absently registering the taste of copper in her mouth. Before her, the shadowed figure hunched slightly, its ragged clothes hung about it loosely, swaying as it began to circle her. Sinewy muscles twitched beneath the sallow, sunken skin of its face and hands. As its deranged, turbulent eyes, locked on hers, Natsuki held her breath, her own appendages nearly paralyzed.

"Move!" The sharp crack of Duran's shout echoed as the beast launched another attack.

Instinctively diving away, Natsuki rolled into a crouch. Breathing in short, ragged pants as the young fighter rose, knees bend slightly in a fighting stance.

"What do I do? It's not like the other."

"It shouldn't be here." Duran's voice rumbled, worriedly as the monster advanced. "A humanoid-type monster is not something you have the capability to beat."

"A lot- of faith- you have in me," Natsuki panted as she dodged the monster's onslaught of attacks, ducking and pivoting out of reach. In-shape as she was, it was still a trying task to maintain a speed quick enough to avoid the beast. "So, then, what-- Argh!"

The talon-like fingers of the creature, swept across her torso, clawing through fabric and into flesh with the effort of a knife through butter.

"Heal." A grunted command, as Natsuki struggled to stay out of the range of the abomination's attacks while the virus went to work. With the severity of the damage taken, proportional to the amount of time the virus needed to remedy it, Natsuki was caught in a swing of the fiend's arm which tossing her back onto the asphalt before the potency of the drug could mend the battered area.

"Heal!" From her sprawled position, a glint of silver hanging at the creature's waist caught her eye. Heart leaping to her throat, Natsuki eyed her salvation. With the strength the virus had returned to her limbs, Natsuki lunged, tackling the infected being to the ground as her fingers closing around the cold steel of his forgotten weapon, tugging frantically. A blow to her ribs as the monstrosity recovered from her attack, sent her skidding. Her long since torn jeans doing nothing to protect her delicate skin from the coarse pitch of the road. The throbbing which now steadily emanating from all over her body, indicated the heavy amount of damage her body has sustained.

Despite that, the raven-haired beauty grinned as she turned fierce eyes on her opponent.

"Eat lead, asshole."

The sight of her weapon aimed at the approaching animal, Natsuki squeezed the trigger, muscles braced for the impending recoil, only to receive none.

"Shi--"

With lightening-like speed, the monster's fist slammed into her gut, the force, barreling her backwards into frame of one of the high-rise buildings that had once dominated the district. Coughing out dust she'd sucked in, Natsuki attempted to move only to find her limbs unresponsive. The edges of her sight grayed, as her focus wavered, indicating her near death state. Closing her eyes, she prepared for the final blow. The blow she had expected did not come, as a shrieking howl pierced the air, followed by the thump of a collapsing body. Through the haze of her critical state, Natsuki winced as the warmth of a hand closed over hers and slid slowly to cover her device where it lingered. A light pinch stirred her as clouded emerald-eyes fluttered open. Still unable to focus, the pain her attacker had caused was fading at an amazing rate. Opening her mouth, Natsuki found herself unable to speak to her savior, hindered by the words that flashed across her vision, obscuring it.

"Saving data." Duran's voice echoed in her mind. "Connection to server terminated."

"Wait!" Natsuki screamed mentally as the world of _Insanis_ faded, replaced by the dim of the light that filtered through her visor.

Kicking herself into a sitting a position, Natsuki ripped the set from her head, glaring at the busty girl who stood at the foot of her bed twirling a duplicated key around her pointer finger.

"Well, well, Natsuki, have you been on that all night? You may want to ask your device to set an alarm clock for you so you don't oversleep." Mai grinned smugly. "Now, will you be having breakfast before school? Or shall we get right to it?"

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**A/N- **This work was done for fun and to temporarily alleviate the boredom of feeding bloody, time-eating owls in another MMO. If you know which one I am talking about, kudos to you. The basic idea for the game system was borrowed from the manga _1/2 Prince_. It's quite interesting, check it out if you've got the time. As far as I know, the title is a made-up word; please don't go searching for it's definition or anything.

Though we will attempt to make this fic as 'realistic' (perse) as possible, please bare in mind that this is a future set AU. If I knew how to make something like this work, I can assure you that I would own Sunrise and currently be manipulating it to suit my interests.

As stated in the beginning, this is a collaborative word; chapter two will hopefully be written by Eagle. Please give her your support.

Well, that's all for now. Feel free to offer corrections, flames, or insights. If not, thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** Mai-HiME/MY-HiME series' are property of their respective owners. Fanfic; not for profit or redistribution, etc, etc.

Greetings from the second author. A good number of you know me via my official penname, which is Eagle8819, but feel free to call me Aki. I'm more used to that, actually. Standard disclaimer aside, I'm not good when it comes to tenses and grammar, so consider yourself advised, and don't cringe too much. You may, also, notice that my style of writing differs a lot from what you've seen in the previous chapter.

But in any case. Enjoy the chapter.

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Natsuki was not happy.

No, she was most definitely _not_.

And all Mai did was smile serenely at her glare.

Actually, scratch that, she was grinning and _snickering_.

Her teeth grounded together.

"Shut up."

"I didn't even say anything yet," the other pointed out helpfully.

That was when she glowered.

"You will."

Mai couldn't resist another grin. "I thought you didn't want to play _Insanis_."

"I --" Natsuki's mouth shut, open, and shut again.

She glared.

"I. Do. Not." the blue-haired girl growled. "You people practically forced me into it. One more day of not being able to decipher a word you and the whole class said was going to drive me insane."

"Suuuuure..."

"Shut up."

But, it wasn't as if that was not true.

People _were_ whispering about it, even as Sakomizu – their history and homeroom teacher – droned on in front of the class, tapping at the blue screen with a long, metallic stick.

"Hey, did you get it yet..?" Boy A.

"It's bloody expensive. What do you think?" Boy B.

"You said you were grinding all night."

"Doesn't mean I have enough yet."

"You suck."

It?

Now what the hell was that about?

Natsuki hesitated. Was asking Mai worth it..?

"Duuude…it's like one of the most expensive guns there! Gimme a break!" Boy B protested.

Guns?

Did the idiot just say _guns_?

"Excuses, excuses."

Boy B sighed. "But you know...it's a really, reaally cool gun..."

"..That's the fifteenth time you said that since the expansion was released."

"But it is! Can you believe the stats..? Triple shot per trigger, _Burst-Shot Explosion_, imbued _Viral Effect_, high critical rate -"

"Yes, yes. You've said all those already."

"- and it looks bloody _cool_."

Idly, the blue-haired girl wondered if it was the gun she saw in a screenshot on the net…

Oh, to hell with it.

"Hey, Mai..."

"Hmm?"

"Do you know what they are talking about?"

Immediately, a Cheshire grin spread across her roommate's face.

_Shit_.

- - -

"Good afternoon, Natsuki."

Said girl grunted. "I'm sore." The bluenette surveyed herself. Her clothes were dirty, there were scrapes, and the nasty wound at her side throbbed.

"That's because you are not entirely healed yet," Duran supplied helpfully; "I strongly suggest you head for the town right away while avoiding open areas. Your health is still dangerously low, and you do not have any supplies remaining."

"Yeah, yeah…" Muttered the disgruntled girl. "Show me the map."

If Duran could be physically seen, Natsuki could have sworn he'd raise an eyebrow at her obedience.

"...I did not think you would heed this advice." It sounded almost amused.

Natsuki glared at her watch.

"The map. Now."

There was no way she would tell the annoying little device that Mai had refused to let her go until the game basics were drilled into her head. This had followed her arrogant statement of saying she did not need a tutorial to get on with things.

"Of course."

A hologram of a map - curiously similar to those in military shows she had seen - hovered over the watch.

"Amis City, marked with the red, blinking X, is where you're headed to. I suggest you make haste; if you tarry in an area, the monsters would sense you before long."

- - -

When Natsuki knew she was nearing the city, it was because people – as individuals or groups – could be seen strolling around ruined buildings. Most of them were walking towards a direction – and some others, they seemed to be just idling, or killing monsters (which Duran identified as one of the weaker monsters around).

And like herself, many of them dressed in simple clothing – jeans and a t-shirt, skirt and tank top, or the simple shorts and sleeveless, all varying in color – were newbies. Some had tattoos, pointy ears, pointy _fingers_, weird looking eyes, – and what the hell was that haircut? Some combination of spiked and gelled curls? – earrings, chokers, and…in short, there were _a lot_.

Freaky hairstyles aside, mused Natsuki, some of the tattoos actually looked pretty damn cool. She recognized a few that were vaguely symbolic to old myths and legends that she had read as a kid. Damn it, if she'd known about it earlier, she would have asked Lunensis for a tattoo.

Then her eyes caught sight of a gun.

Rather, someone whose hand rested comfortably on the holster of a gun.

Now, this guy did not look like a newbie - he has messy jet-black hair, cool-looking sunglasses, black jeans, silver chain hanging by the belt, white shirt, and a leather jacket – with an impressively long and big sword strapped to his back, this man stood in the crowd, a thumb hooked in his pocket while the other played with the buckle of his gun holster. Wait, that gun – could it be a _Colt Python_? A .357 magnum cartridge, six-inch barrel and Royal Blue Finish?!

_WANT_.

"You don't have the funds for it," deadpanned Duran.

She jerked out of her thoughts.

Blinked.

Then scowled.

"Shut up."

The intelligent device ignored her. "Colt Python, dropped by _Insu 13_ - which, by the way, is _impossible_ for you to handle at this point of time - " Natsuki bristled, " - is one of the rarest weapons available in _Insanis_. It isn't a very powerful weapon, but people have been known to buy it for an incredibly high price due to its beauty and rarity. Weapons dating centuries ago are difficult to come by, and very few exist in this world."

The bluenette paused at that, "are you telling me that rifles, shotguns, and the like, all from centuries ago - they _exist_ here?"

"Indeed."

Natsuki, of course...daydreamed.

_Glock 17, Mohawk 600, Kalashnikov AK-47__..._

"...Well, Natsuki, if you really want them that much, you have to be either very lucky, or very rich," Duran decided to burst her bubble, "The bidding wars for rare weapons like this are very hard, and they are, essentially, a sign of how rich you are in _Insanis_. People who covet these rare items are known as the _Collectors_."

Said girl bristled again. "Stop reading my mind, damn it!"

"Impossible. The moment you put on the headset, I am connected directly to your brain waves."

"Brai -" the bluenette cut herself of. "You know what? Nevermind!"

- - -

Amis, The Underground City – as Duran described it – was one of the few remaining save havens from the monstrosities of the surface world.

"So…how do I get in?"

She had entirely no idea where and how to go underground. There were certainly no stairs heading _down_ around.

"There's a hidden teleportation device in that building," a male voice – not Duran – told her.

Natsuki stiffened. Did she mutter that aloud?

She glanced behind her.

A tall boy, with a roguish grin, pointed at a shambles of an old building.

An awfully _charming_ grin, which almost always belong to the lady-killer type. Never a good sign in Natsuki's book and more often than not, more trouble than they are worth…

Then he opened his mouth again.

"Oh!" Natsuki cut in, straining a grin, "thanks for the help! Got to run now, kthanksbye."

Said boy blinked at the empty space before him, mouth hanging.

-

Far from what Natsuki had expected, Amis was not dark and dreary. Lights, bright - but easy on the eyes - lights, illuminated the whole city. In the air of the fairly busy town, strange, pentagon looking devices buzzing overhead, holding some sort of...advertisement in each. She read the sign off the first device she saw.

「Selling _El-Claw_! Contact Tensh for more information! 」

She glanced further up, at the ceiling. She could see the rough surface that came from digging and drilling, but there seemed to be a blue-coloured, transparent layer – the same layer that surrounded the whole city.

"It's a barrier, Natsuki," supplied Duran. "One that ensures that no infectious virus that travels by air will be able to make its way in. You may notice stray animals tottering around – children, women, and men – they are all safe from the outbreak, and this is due to the dome. But of course…not many cities are as lucky as this one. Amis is possibly the least affected by the outbreak of virus infection of the whole world – and one of the few that can support itself without needing supplies from the outside world - which is why it thrives so well."

People were walking around, talking, eating, selling, or just loitering. Contrary to the type of people she saw before she entered the city, inside, there was more varied type of people. A lot of them, in fact, did not look like newbies. Many carried knives, crossbows, long swords - and is that a huge-ass _shuriken _on his back? - and, of course...guns.

Guns that were big, or small, or somewhere in the middle, but all so very, very cool.

Her hand itched.

"Duran."

"Yes?"

"Where's the weapons shop?"

"...Two blocks down ahead, and turn left."

She strode forward.

- - -

"You realize that you've entirely no cash on hand, Natsuki?"

"Yeah, yeah..." muttered the girl."Is the collar that I picked up sellable?"

"Yes, of course."

"Give it to me."

- - -

_Ka-ching!_

_$7 gained._

- - -

Natsuki scanned the weapons on display.

_Five bucks, five bucks...what can I buy with five bucks..._

...Nothing, virtually. Even the most basic weapons cost at least twenty. Above twenty, rather.

"...What the hell."

"Were you expecting something else?" Sarcasm courtesy of Duran.

"Sh."

Then she spied the word on a board next to the blacksmith who had his burly hands crossed - obviously an NPC - "Random roll! All weapons possible. All items possible! Give it a shot for $5! Only for today!"

"...Oh, no, I strongly advice against that, Natsuki."

The bluenette had other ideas. "Why?"

"Most of the items that come out varies from a dagger to a rock to a healing virus - which costs only fifty cents for the potency you need as of now, by the way - and, yes, items that are more highly priced are there too but chances are incredibly low - "

"I will do it."

If the intelligent device could sigh, he would have.

- - -

_Ka-ching!_

_-$5_

_$2 remaining._

_- - -_

A box was thrust out to her, with a hole – big enough for a hand – on its top.

The blacksmith nodded at the box, "put your hand in, and grab a card."

Now, Natsuki looked suspicious.

Grab a card?

Was she being ripped off?

"Just pick a card, Natsuki," Duran said, almost sounding as if he was suffering, "It's not _just_ a card."

The bluenette stuck her hand in the box, and rummaged, feeling the cool surface of the cards.

_Something good, something good…_

She pulled out a card.

_Ping_.

The card glowed in her hand.

Then, the card…disintegrated.

Or _looked_ like it was disintegrating, with the numbers "1" and "0" seemingly dropping onto her hand from the card.

Then there was a flash, bright enough to make her go blind for a second, and that was the point when she felt as if she was holding onto something a little heavy, rectangular-ish, and has a rough surface.

She squinted at the item in her hand.

"..."

"..."

"...What the hell is this?"

"Pistols?" the blacksmith raised an eyebrow at her.

Yes. Pistols. Two of them.

But they didn't really look like pistols.

They seemed to be a combination of a revolver and some...weird…sphere...thingy...that replaced the cartridge.

"Hm." Duran sounded surprised.

"Hm," parroted Natsuki.

"Well," the intelligent device sounded bemused, "these are _Viral Pistols._"

"Viral Pistols…?"

"I'm sure you can guess some of its application from its name alone, Natsuki. It's a weapon that is capable of using non-elemental and elemental-type bullets."

"Oh..?" She wasn't really sure how to take that. Did that mean the weapon was good or bad or what…?

The blacksmith, in the meanwhile, had pulled out four tubes with thick and grey glowing liquid.

"Standard non-elemental viral bullets for your pistols, complimentary. One tube holds thirty shots."

Natsuki blinked at the tubes held out to her.

"How do I even..."

"You reload the weapon by pressing the tube to the embedded component on the round cartridge, Natsuki."

"Oh."

- - -

"By the way, Natsuki...have you thought of which side you would like to join?"

"Side?"

"Side. You are aware of the two factions; the Rebellion, and the Organization, and that you need to pick a side, correct?"

Of course she was.

..Since Mai told her, anyway.

_"The Rebellion fights for the freedom of humanity, while the Organization seeks to restructure society," quoted Mai, as if she picked it off some guide, "If you don't choose a side, you've no way of obtaining rank-up quests. And you need identifications to enter certain territories of the side you choose. There are, of course, neutral grounds...but not all neutral grounds have PVP banned like Amis."_

_"Rank up quests?" she repeated. _

_"Rank up. Most weapons, or upgrades, or viruses, will only be unlocked when you reach that specific rank." Mai grinned. "The difference between Insanis and most others online games are that there is no levelling here, Natsuki."_

No levelling. That was certainly very different from most other games.

_"...And, of course, if you die, you will de-rank. The higher rank you are, the harder is it to complete that certain quest to rank up, so try not to die too often. _

"So a side," muttered Natsuki.

"Mmhmm."

The girl weighed her choices.

Though, frankly, it wasn't a very difficult choice to begin with.

The bluenette always had problems with authority figures, much less ones that seeks to re-educate but…

"…Bah." Natsuki waved a hand dismissively. "I'll think about it later."

- - -

She peered into a shop.

Clothes.

Lots of it.

The mass of clothes- despite some being to her distaste - looked much cleaner and sturdy than the torn, dirt-covered jeans and T-Shirt she was currently wearing.

"...Money, Natsuki."

Said girl grimaced.

"Okay already!"

- - -

"Natsuki."

"Hmm?"

"Look to your left."

She followed his directions, and saw an old lady hunching over, hands resting on a walking stick.

There was…a blue-coloured exclamation mark above her head.

"What the…"

"If you see someone with that symbol above their head, that means she or he has a quest available for you to complete. And this," added Duran, "is how you're going to obtain cash today."

Quests…

Tedious, tedious quests…

"Unless, of course, if you feel like risking your life with the monsters."

The bluenette grimaced.

- - -

_Quest 1:_

The old lady smiled kindly at her.

"My dear, can you find me a crate?"

"Crate..."

"It's a city with plenty of alley ways," Duran said, and Natsuki could almost see him shrug dismissively.

So the bluenette searched.

And searched.

And searched.

Half an hour later:

"There's no bloody crate --!"

"Oh. What's that thing to your left?"

She looked to her left, inside an alley.

The crate was innocently buried under a pile of cardboards and empty bottles and rubbish.

Natsuki resisted the urge to stomp her foot.

- - -

_Crate given to viral shop owner._

_$30 gained._

_Two healing vials gained._

_Sold cardboards and empty bottles._

_$3 gained._

_$35 remaining. _

- - -

_Quest 2:_

"Shear wool for me," the man pointed at a direction, "you'll see sheep in a field that way. Get me enough to fill this bag."

He gave her a shearing knife, and a large, _large_ bag.

"..."

He grinned brilliantly at her again.

Oh, the _brilliance__of it--! _

"Have fun!"

- - -

_$35 gained._

_..Back-ache gained._

_- - -_

_Quest 3_:

"I lost my dolly," cried the little girl. "Find it please!"

"Uh..."

- - -

After a while…

Natsuki, exhausted beyond words, felt herself drop onto a bench, behind it a majestically beautiful fountain with koi statues.

"Duran…"

"Yes, Natsuki?"

"How much do I have now, and what's in my inventory?"

"$203, a dagger, four non-elemental viral tubes and ten healing vials ," the gruff voice replied, sounding suspiciously amused. "You've done good work."

A light breeze blew past her, which was refreshing, and she sighed.

What a day.

Not doing stupid quests like this again. Ever. Ever, damn it!

"Once you can hold yourself against monsters, I doubt you have to," her partner said, before adding, "besides, you know the city a lot better now, don't you?"

That was true, even if she didn't want to admit it.

"That's the point of the quests, Natsuki. To get you acquainted with the game play of _Insanis_, and, of course, to obtain some cash without _dying_."

The last word was said rather pointedly.

Natsuki scowled.

She would have retorted, but her eyes caught side of long, hazel brown hair in distance.

And eyes, red in colour, like molten blood.

It was a girl, tall - probably taller than her - and she was conversing with someone.

There was something about her - or her presence - that felt familiar.

Then -

Words flowed across her vision.

**DISCONNECTED**_**.**_

"Saving data," Duran's voice resounded in her ears, "Connection to server terminated."

_Shii -_-

For the second time in two days, Natsuki ripped the set from her head, ready to shout obscenities at Mai.

But the problem was, as Natsuki looked on in confusion, Mai just wasn't there, and her door wasn't even open.

Then she spied her computer on the table.

Across the holographic monitor, the words continued to blink.

**CONNECTION DOWN.**

Natsuki cursed.

* * *

Notes from the authors…

**Aki(秋)****:** Those of you who have read 1/2 Prince, you may notice another similarity or two, but, I'll tell you that it won't go much further than that. Most MMO's tend to be generic to a certain degree as well, and this is no exception. Gun name/detail references are picked off the internet, because I've absolutely no knowledge where guns are concerned. But other than that, hope it was a good chapter, and thanks for reading.

**808Tenshi(天使):**

**sourly: **I always forget my passwords and end up having to go through numerous Capcha's to show that I am not a bot or something. Still, thanks for taking the time to leave a review! -天使

**xChiyo: **Haha, that's cool. It is a pretty neat manga. Glad you enjoyed the chapter, thanks for reading! -天使


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